


preskool is kool

by unnecessary_databass



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, also that scene in fast and furious 6 where the rock is coaching his daughters soccer team, as always brooklyn 99 references, i meant to have this up earlier but oops, inspiration taken from Bad Moms, lena gets surprise custody of a surprise niece, rated M cause adults have fun but nothing to be concerned about
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-14
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:01:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23138131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unnecessary_databass/pseuds/unnecessary_databass
Summary: Siobhan, president of the PTA, is bagging on a harried single parent who works two jobs to make ends meet for bringing their child to school late, Lena sips her coffee and calls out “Siobhan, honey, where’d you get that dress? My my, it looks just like the modern art installation that made the news because the cleaning staff threw it away!”Next to her, Kara laughs, Lena shrugs. “I didn’t expect custody of Lex’s surprise daughter. I owe it to her to make sure her childhood experience is better than mine."the Bad Moms Preschool AU, another lots of thousands of words based, once again, off a single picture.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 29
Kudos: 528





	preskool is kool

**Author's Note:**

> hope y'all enjoy some lightheartedness in this, cause this was seriously fun for me to write, and if we're all stuck at home might as well share it. stay healthy friends.

Lena liked shaking things up.

She certainly didn't expect to have a kid, especially not at the tender young age of twenty-seven (not nearly old enough to settle down, obviously), but when a three-year-old bastard daughter of Lex and Eve's was dropped into her lap with no warning and a stack of legal papers announcing she was young Alexandra Tessmacher Luthor's guardian (Lena scoffed lightly at the name before realizing the lawyers were serious), Lena took up the responsibility without complaint. Lena liked shaking things up, and she realized pretty quick she was going to have to shake up her own life instead of the corporate world if she wanted this kid to be a decent person.

Tessa, as Lena called her, to avoid another L-named Luthor and not call her Lexi after all the things Lex had done, was a precocious and brilliant young child, as was to be expected, given the intellect of both her parents. Lena had no idea how she didn't know Lex and Eve had a child, but both of them were completely unavailable to take care of a child. Not that she'd let them, anyway. No child deserved that.

So Lena stepped down from L-Corp, let Sam take over while she still consulted and worked in the labs on occasion, and began to be a nearly-full-time parent. Tessa adapted to her change in lifestyle quickly. Children were resilient like that. Tessa had only ever had a series of what Lena was fairly sure were decent nannies before this, and her memory had barely begun to develop. No, it wasn't Tessa that had difficulty with the change. It was Lena.

Lena, who called Sam in the middle of the night nearly in tears when Tessa wouldn't go to sleep, Lena, who signed Tessa up for preschool and combed her thick dark curls with a smirk for her brother's ghost, Lena, who read every parenting book from reputable sources she could get her hands on, and Lena who changed her DVR's schedule from the news and engineering lectures to Elmo and Barney and Arthur and Thomas the Tank Engine and felt her brain rotting away.

But the one thing about parenting Lena was good at right away?

Fucking up--sorry, _shutting up_ snotty parents on the preschool run.

It was quickly apparent that because the preschool was down the road from the massive high school, there was a lot of morning traffic. That didn't frustrate Lena _at all._ But being time-efficient in everything she did, Lena began the habit of walking to school with Tess. It was only a half-mile away, Tessa's tiny pink backpack bouncing between her shoulder blades, filled with nothing but a banana and an extra jacket and maybe some playdoh or a change of clothes. Lena held Tessa's tiny hand in her own and felt a sense of protectiveness wrap over her so strongly she wanted to squeeze Tessa harder in their goodbye hug.

"Have a good day sweetie," Lena said, wrapping up Tessa fiercely. "Learn something and have fun, okay?" Tessa's little arms squeezed her neck before she hopped out of Lena's embrace to run into school. Tessa still didn't talk much. Lena worried about that, but experts assured her more words would come with time. Until then, Lena would ensure that those who had _too many_ words would use less of them.

Lena parked herself on the park bench outside the school building, looking around the greenery idly. The school was well-maintained, if a little scrubby for the neighborhood. Lena liked it. It was honest. There were three classrooms, with a different teacher for each, and they all came highly recommended--Mr. Jonnz being the oldest, Ms. Hoang and Mr. Schott both incredibly excited about literally everything. It was nice. The only problem? It was public, the neighborhood was fairly well-off, and because the two private preschools in the area were notoriously hard to get into. That meant that a lot of snotty "my child was on the waiting list for _the_ Ivy League feeder preschool but somehow still didn’t get in" and therefore doubly-bitter parents went here.

And they made sure everyone else knew they were better than them.

Not if Lena had anything to do about it, of course.

"Hi, Ms. Luthor," Mr. Schott said, walking up with his leather bag slung over his shoulder. He wore button downs tucked into slacks and fun-patterned ties and the kids loved his whole vibe. Last week Lena had heard Siobhan, secretary of the PTA, ask loudly if _that_ was what he considered professional look. (Lena had asked her in return if she ever managed to get the flour stain out of the butt of her nine-hundred-dollar skirt, and fellow parent Alex Danvers had laughed so loudly her daughter had asked if she was okay. Winn didn't know of the incident and Lena intended to keep it that way, if she could. No need to embarrass him.) "Tessa already inside?"

Lena nodded, smiling at him. "Care to join me?"

Winn glanced towards the chaos of kids outside his classroom, who clearly hadn't spotted him yet, and shrugged. "Yeah, why not?" He sat, adjusting his bag on his lap. "How's your day going?"

"Not bad, Mr. Schott. Yours?"

Winn chuckled. "I promised them finger painting today, then forgot to wear my paint day shirt. So, I might ruin this one, even with the apron. So, you know," he propped an elbow on the back of the bench, shooting her a winning smile, self-deprecating and clean. Another thing Lena liked about this preschool. The teachers didn’t pretend to be smarter than they were, unlike the investors she used to work with. "I'm having a good day now, but might not be so much later."

Lena laughed. "I'm sorry to hear that. If I were you I'd keep a paint shirt in the room at all times."

Winn made a face. "I did that, but then the room always smelled like paint after about three uses. I had to go get it cleaned. We'll see how this goes. I always think I can keep it under control, and before I know it the janitorial staff is leaving me passive aggressive notes on the whiteboard about just asking for plastic in advance next time."

Lena grinned. "Doesn't come out of carpet so easy?"

Winn groaned, shutting his eyes. "It's supposed to. But welcome to working in a preschool," he raised his arms dramatically. "Where everything is non-toxic but the cleaning instructions don't matter." With that, he drummed on his bag and got up with a flourish, turning to smile at Lena once more. "Thank you, as always, Ms. Luthor, for the lovely conversation and your beatific presence glorifying our humble drop off. I must now take my leave," he said, drawing himself up and making a comical face at one of his students passing by, waving. "My barbarian horde awaits."

Lena laughed again. "Enjoy finger painting, Mr. Schott. I'll keep your plastic tips in mind next time Tess wants to." Winn waved and headed towards his classroom, and Lena could hear after just a second the cheer that announced his arrival at his classroom. She smiled, and waved to a walking up Alex Danvers and her four-year-old Jeremiah (ever so adorably nicknamed JD).

"Hey, Lena," Alex said, squeezing JD's hand. "Can you say hi to Lena, JD?"

JD waved, opened his mouth, and then seemed to think better of speaking to her. Lena chuckled. "Hi, JD. Good to see you." JD waved again before swerving to crash into his mother's leg, and Lena stifled a laugh as Alex rolled her eyes with a fond grin, a hand on the back of JD's head to redirect him gently.

Siobhan was walking up next, pulling her little brat out of her red Porsche minivan (who knew Porsche even _made_ minivans? Lena shuddered to think of the gas mileage). Siobhan ignored her completely, tugging along her small monster with her Gucci backpack. (Lena will not admit it, but she _almost_ got Tessa a designer backpack before wiser voices prevailed, and now she's glad they did. She'd hate for Tessa to match with that menace.) Lena let her go with a watchful gaze. Today. Siobhan gave her a side-eye glance once and then kept walking, her heels clicking along the sidewalk. (Lena had seen her stumble once on the grass and nearly cried laughing later, it was sort of the best day of her life.)

A few other parents passed, some waving hi if they knew her, or completely ignoring her if they were monsters. That was Lena's first clue when she started her little supervising game. If they waved hi, they were willing to get to know people. If they weren't, they were snobby assholes. Chances were their kids were spoiled rotten and had a strong sense of undeserved superiority already. It was a delight, inserting herself into situations to calm them down. Lena had just enough financial and social clout in the real world to shut anyone up, especially with her decades of practice. She was just sharp enough to adjust her cutting remarks to be about thirty-five year old's fashion choices instead of board members' bone-headed decisions. It was lots of fun.

And since she basically quit her job, it wasn't like she had anything else to do.

"Hey." Alex Danvers had plopped down next to her. "What's the betting that Siobhan's kid is gonna come home with finger paint on that Gucci backpack and Siobhan will be the one to throw a fit?"

Lena snorted (elegantly), grinning at Alex. They'd become quick friends, bonding over Alex's medical career (especially the part where she still rode a motorcycle on the weekends and was a kick-ass lesbian happily married to a wonderful therapist on the cutting edge of brainwave research) and science and their shared dry humor. And you know, that Alex had a superhot super-cute bi disaster of a sister who dropped off JD on Tuesdays and Fridays and who Lena had a huge crush on, not that Alex knew.

"Oh, I don't know," Lena said, crossing one leg over the other and waving to another set of parents and kids. Alex waved too, like a responsible member of society and not a fucking asshole. (It was possible Lena had very low standards for people.) "I think the small Siobhan will cry first. Then mommy dragon will buy her a new one."

Alex snorted (less elegantly, but she was in a leather jacket). "Damn, Luthor, you're probably right. I'll ask JD about it when he gets home."

"Kara picking him up today?" Lena asked, nonchalantly.

Alex raised an eyebrow, and Lena refused to admit it was Alex seeing through her. "Maybe," Alex said slowly. "She could be. What's it to ya?"

"Just wondering why you're not picking him up," Lena said, squinting unconvincingly at the crosswalk and waving to another family.

"And your first guess wasn't his other mom, my wife?" Lena _hmmm_ ed noncommittally. Alex chuckled. "You're a gay disaster under all that class, Luthor."

"Whatever," Lena muttered. The trickle of kids was slowing down. "You didn't even answer."

Alex laughed again, louder this time. "No, Kara's on assignment in Metropolis right now."

Lena frowned, disappointment dropping thick and heavy in her stomach. "She didn't say--"

"It came up unexpectedly," Alex said, waving a hand. "Chasing a big story. She might be here for the Friday drop off, but certainly for the Tuesday. And," Alex said, clapping her shoulder before standing up, "She'll have next Friday off. If that's pertinent information for your not-crush."

"Get out of here, Danvers," Lena muttered, flushing slightly, and Alex laughed.

(Siobhan's demon spawn did indeed throw a tantrum at the paint on her Gucci backpack, and though Mr. Schott handled it quite well, Siobhan threatened to sue before Mr. Jonnz stepped in with a stare of passive disapproval and asked Siobhan precisely what she thought occurred at a preschool.)

Another morning came and went with Siobhan wisely making no comment. And then it was Friday morning, and if Lena so _happened_ to wear green that blended in with the foliage behind her usual spot so Siobhan might slip up and Lena could say something clever in front of Kara, then that wasn't anybody's business except hers. She and Tessa walked to school, Tessa stopping to point out a snail on the sidewalk for a _very long_ two minutes that Lena actually quite enjoyed, telling Tessa everything she knew about snails (which wasn't much, admittedly, but she asked Tessa questions about what she could observe and made a mental note to look up more in case Tessa continued to decide that snails were effervescent) while Tessa absorbed it all and made the occasional comment, careful not to poke its shell too hard and crush it by mistake. Lena cradled her coffee thermos (because she made her own coffee and kept it in a thermos now, the height of suburbia) in one hand and Tessa's little hand in the other.

Kara beat her to her normal spot. Lena glanced at her on her bench, Kara sitting next to JD, his skin several shades darker than hers and his curls precious as anything, his little legs waving in the air. Kara was chatting away to him, gesturing expansively as her voice rose and fell, and he was watching her with rapt attention. Lena turned Tessa towards them on instinct. Maybe two quiet kids would be good for each other, even if they were in different classes.

Kara glanced up and startled slightly. "Hey!" she greeted, cutting herself off and smiling wide. "Good morning, Tessa," she said, and Tessa smiled shyly. Kara turned that blinding smile on Lena. "Morning, Lena," she said softly, and Lena could have sworn Tessa's shyness was infecting her as she gave the same shy smile in return.

"Morning, Kara." Lena focused on JD. "Good morning, JD. You excited for school?" JD mumbled something. Kara nudged him, nodded encouragingly, and JD looked up, opened his mouth, and closed it again. He nodded, more firmly this time. Lena smiled at the _what you gonna do_ shrug from Kara. Lena squeezed Tessa's hand. "Shall we head in?"

Kara looked at JD, and he nodded. She pulled him off the bench, hopping up herself, and they started towards the classrooms. "Tessa, what did you do in school yesterday?"

"Finger painted," Tessa mumbled.

Kara's smile brightened. "No way! JD did too! What'd you paint?"

Tessa shrugged, mumbling a "Colors."

"Abstract, I love it," Kara said, and Lena bit back a laugh. Kara winked at her. Kara kept up the chatter until they reached the classrooms, JD angling towards Mr. Schott's room, Tessa steering Lena towards Ms. Hoang's. Lena caught Kara's eyes and jerked her head in what she hoped conveyed a _see you outside?_ Kara nodded. Whatever the hell that meant. Not important. Lena leaned down and scooped up Tessa, balancing her on her hip, hugging her tightly.

"Have a good day at school, honey," Lena murmured, and Tessa's little arms wrapped around her neck in a tight hug that Lena knew instinctively she would never, ever get tired of receiving. "Learn some things, have some fun. I'll be here to pick you up afterwards, okay?"

Tessa nodded, and wiggled. Lena let her down, smoothed back her hair, and Tessa was gone. Lena waved to Ms. Hoang, who smiled at her, and headed back to her bench. Kara joined her a minute later, quirking an eyebrow in a hello. "So," Kara said, plopping herself down on the bench the exact same way Alex tended to, "Winn told me that today is Checkers day. Should be a real fun board game fest for the next few weeks. We'll be tripping and choking on checkers pieces for the next month, I bet."

Lena smirked. "Trust Kara Danvers to come back from a business trip chasing the biggest story of the month and immediately ask about her nephew's preschool day."

Kara spluttered. "Hey, Winn was my friend way before JD got him as a teacher, and it wasn't the biggest story--"

Lena rolled her head around to face Kara, taking her in and smiling calmly. "Kara," she said softly, "I read the news this morning. You had quite the scoop, Ms. Corruption Across the Country Unveiled."

Kara closed her mouth with an audible click, and Lena realized she _did_ look a little tired. She must have been up half the night writing that article, and had taken two long flights in the past four days. She must have been exhausted, but here she was, taking her nephew to preschool like it was the most natural thing in the world. Okay, so Lena was a little bit in love. "Thank you," Kara said quietly. "Did you read it all?" Lena nodded. Kara leaned forward, her hands gesturing in that way that Lena knew meant she was about to ask a question. "Okay, can I ask, was it cohesive? Did it get the point across and like still get all the relevant details?"

Lena chuckled. "Don't you have an editor for this?"

"Yes, but from a layman standpoint," Kara said, looking frustrated as Lena waved to a few parents and kids. The cloudy morning made Kara's blue eyes turn halfway to gray and Lena was having serious trouble not getting lost in them on the preschool lawn. "Not that you're a layman!" Kara blurted, and Lena smiled. "I just mean--someone who's not a journalist!"

Lena laid a hand on her arm. "I know what you meant, Kara, and it was very cohesive. I got the full picture and why it was important. Your prose was beautiful, as always."

Kara blushed, slumping on the bench. "Thanks." Kara eyed her thermos. "Is that coffee?" Lena chuckled and pushed it into her hands without a second thought. "You're my favorite," Kara mumbled exhaustedly, and Lena blushed. "Shoot, that's good coffee."

Lena pulled the thermos back from her hands before Kara drained it. "I know. Do you swear at all?"

"We're at a preschool, Lena." Kara slumped further into the bench, and Lena spared her a fond glance at her eyes closed.

"Right," Lena confirmed vaguely, eyes fixed on Siobhan. The she-demon had just arrived, her baby demon in tow. Siobhan walked past them without seeming to notice them--but she did notice the stain on the shirt of a hapless parent bringing in their child.

"Did you forget your grown-up clothes?" Siobhan scoffed at them, a sneer on her upper lip.

Anger coiled in Lena's gut. “Siobhan, honey," she called out loudly, "Where’d you get that dress? My my, it looks _just_ like the modern art installation that made the news because the cleaning staff threw it away!” Kara startled next to her, a snort of laughter escaping.

Siobhan curled her lip and stalked away, Satan-spawn in tow. The parent glanced thankfully at Lena, and Lena tipped her coffee cup in salute. “Have a good day at school sweetie,” she said to their child, because Lena knew every kid in class and they all knew her too, she’s the mom that volunteers twice a week and made the best pancakes when they have breakfast at school days.

Next to her, Kara giggled again, brazenly took another gulp of Lena’s coffee, and Lena let her somehow with only a roll of her eyes, propping her elbows on the back of the bench and stretching out leisurely, more relaxed now she had shut down Siobhan for the day. “You’re more fun when you’re retired,” Kara told her. “Don’t get me wrong, interviewing you as the L-Corp CEO was fun and all, but you’re more fun like this.”

Lena shrugged, warmth curling in her stomach at Kara's compliment. “I didn’t expect custody of Lex’s surprise daughter. I owe it to her to make sure her childhood experience is better than mine. That starts with being present and loving. L-Corp is in fine hands and I still get to play in the labs. So for now,” she plucked her coffee back out of Kara’s hands, frowning critically, and reached out to wipe a spot of coffee off of Kara’s nose. Kara blushed, and Lena smiled slightly, “I’ll fight these demons instead of the corporate ones.”

Kara reached out and took her free hand, squeezing it warmly. "Well, in case no one's told you, you're doing amazing."

The words washed over Lena, unexpected in their sincerity, knocking her over like an tsunami with how much she needed them. She blinked. "No," she said quietly. "They uh, there is no one to tell me that." She clamped her mouth shut over saying anything more embarrassing. She had Sam and Jack, but she'd only had Tessa for a short time anyway. "Thank you," she said softly, and glanced at Kara, still slouched impressively on the park bench, to see her looking back at Lena with impossibly soft eyes.

Kara squeezed her hand again. "You are," she promised. "Tessa's a good kid, and you're managing her beautifully all alone. It's impressive. She'll turn out great, especially because she has such a good example in you."

It was Lena's turn to blush. "Thank you," she mumbled again, looking away in case she started to cry. "That means so much, actually. That is so good to hear." She scrambled for a change in subject, looking anywhere but Kara. "Know anything about snails?" Kara raised an amused eyebrow. "Tessa decided the one on the sidewalk today was the most fascinating in the world, which means I'll be spending the morning researching them so I have more facts to tell her."

Kara chuckled as the parents all began to walk out, the yard slowly emptying. "That's awesome," she said. "JD got fixated on the super messed-up piece of sidewalk like a block away, so I feel you. Except I don't have any facts about sidewalk cracks, just had to sit down and examine the patterns it made with him until we were almost going to be late. You going to finish that?" Lena rolled her eyes and handed over the coffee. "Ugh, thank you, you're the best."

"Mhm," Lena said dryly, watching Kara chug her coffee _(not_ because Kara had an unfairly beautiful neck) _._ "Don't you have a job to be at, instead of mugging random bystanders of their morning caffeine?"

Kara held an offended hand over her heart. "You _gave_ this to me, Ms. Luthor, as a token of your favor!"

"A token of my favor, huh?" Lena raised an eyebrow, angling her body more towards Kara as Siobhan's Porsche minivan door slammed, a sign Lena's unsolicited supervising shift was over for the morning. Lena propped her head in her hand, leaning against the back of the bench to give Kara her full attention. Kara, her body a straight diagonal line (a very uncomfortable position on this wooden bench, Lena was sure) by now, angled her head towards Lena, grinning cheekily.

"Yeah," she said, a _duh_ in her voice. "Because I brighten your Tuesday and Friday mornings. Don't you know I caught a red-eye back, just so I could drop off JD and see you?" Kara's blue eyes widened insistently, and Lena couldn't tell if the sparkle in them was a tease or not, "I couldn't bear to go the whole weekend without seeing you again until Tuesday." Lena's stomach flipped traitorously.

"Liar," she accused, rolling her eyes with a grin.

"I am completely serious," Kara insisted earnestly, then laughed a little, and Lena laughed with her, Kara shifting in her uncomfortable position. "I don't have to be in until a staff meeting at ten today, actually," Kara said, settling back into her diagonal position. "So, I'm free to mug corporate millionaires all morning." Lena scoffed. Kara glanced over and winked. "You know I investigated you, Ms. Luthor. I may not know your exact net worth, but I've got the best guess of anyone at this preschool."

"Oh no," Lena said dryly. "My secrets." Kara laughed, sliding an inch lower on the bench, and Lena grinned. Making Kara laugh was fun.

"By the way," Kara said, "I got you a present, here--" and the woman had the audacity to hand Lena's thermos back to her.

"Wow," Lena said, her fingers slipping against Kara's as she took it back. "For me? You shouldn't have." Kara giggled again, and Lena took a leap and smoothed the hair in Kara's face back behind her ear, the gesture familiar from all the times she did it for Tessa. Kara's eyes fluttered shut, and Lena began to let herself believe Kara liked her too. "Seriously," Lena said, as Kara's eyes didn't open. "You need to go back to bed."

"Nope," Kara said, shaking her head stubbornly. "If I do, I won't wake up, and I need to be at that meeting in an hour and a half. And I'll mess up getting back on my sleep schedule in this time zone. Caffeine is my only hope now."

"And how's that working out for you?" Lena asked, bemused.

Kara sat up suddenly, and Lena's eyes tracked her every movement. Kara whipped around to face her, an idea lighting up her eyes. "It's about to work a lot better, because I'm going to put a lot more into my system. Wanna come?"

Lena raised her eyebrows, heart thundering. "Depends. You asking me on a date, Ms. Danvers?"

Kara twisted her lips to the side for just a second, eyes focused on Lena and only Lena. "Yes," she decided. She held out her hand. "You in?"

Lena put her hand in Kara's and their fingers clasped together reassuringly, automatically. "Yes."

The date was relaxed, and easy, and Kara told Lena _I don't think I've ever been this not-nervous on a date,_ and somehow made it sound like a compliment. Conversation flowed easily, and as Lena walked Kara towards CatCo for her meeting at the end of it (Kara having had three large cups of coffee and Lena managing one small one), Kara took her hand again.

"I'm sorry this was such a weird date," Kara said abruptly as the building came in sight.

"Weird?" Lena laughed. "Kara, I have a preschooler. I don't think this could have come at a better time."

Kara grinned slyly. "So if I were to ask you to coffee again on Tuesday morning?"

Lena squeezed her hand as they came to a stop on the sidewalk. "I'd say yes, but only if you come over for dinner tomorrow night."

"Done." Kara smiled, and leaned in to press a kiss to Lena's cheek. "I can't wait."

Lena matched her smile. "Me either." Kara's phone dinged, and Kara rolled her eyes exasperatedly at it. "Go, Miss Star Reporter," Lena said, releasing her hand and pushing her away gently. "You've got a world to save with your reporting."

"Yeah, yeah," Kara mumbled, blushing. "Tomorrow night?"

"5:30," Lena confirmed. "I'll text you my address." Kara grinned, and Lena watched as she turned and left, but Kara only got three steps down the sidewalk before Lena realized what was missing and chased after her.

And if passersby stopped to stare as Lena kissed her on the middle of the sidewalk that beautiful cloudy morning, Lena couldn't quite care.

\--Three Months Earlier--

"Hey," Lena said at the end of Kara's latest interview, standing, "I want you to meet someone, by the way." She pushed the intercom button on the desk phone. "Sam, can you come in here please?" She looked up at Kara, offering a strained smile. "Samantha Arias will be our new CEO, effective next week."

"What?" Kara looked startled, and a little upset. "Did something happen?"

The door pushed open, and Sam smiled hesitantly as she entered, eyeing Kara's upset face and Lena's hesitant one. "Knock knock?" she tried.

"Sam," Lena smiled, trying for normal, "This is Kara Danvers, she's with CatCo Worldwide, she's done--"

"Everything fair that's ever been written on you, I'm familiar," Sam said with a smile. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Danvers."

Kara shook her extended hand with a faint smile, blushing just a little, and Lena felt a wave of jealousy crash over her, once, before it was gone under Kara's continued concerned look. "Kara's fine," Kara said. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Arias."

"Oh, please, it's just Sam," Sam said, waving a hand and smiling. "I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other soon, Kara."

Kara nodded, smile slipping. "Can I inquire after the reasons for the switch?"

Sam glanced at Lena, flicking her eyebrows up in question, and Lena shrugged and tilted her head to say _you can go._ Sam nodded and smiled once, exiting quickly and shutting the door behind her. "I gained surprise custody of my niece last week," Lena said slowly, leaning against the cabinet and crossing her arms to face Kara, watching her reaction. Understanding dawned over Kara's face, though her eyes still showed questions. "I didn't know she existed," Lena explained. "But apparently my criminal brother and his assistant--the one that just tried to infiltrate CatCo before you caught her, excellent catch by the way--" Kara blushed, ducking her head, "Had an affair no one knew about a few years ago, and thus," Lena shrugged, "Now that they're both locked up, she was headed to foster care. I won't let her fall into the wrong hands when I'm right here. I'm stepping back to be there for her."

Kara smiled softly. "That's really wonderful of you, Lena."

Lena shrugged, feeling flushed under Kara's attention. "The whole nanny thing will only work out for so long. She arrives in a few days, and she's just ready to start preschool with the new year in two weeks. I know it'll be a push, but I want her to be into normalcy as soon as possible, and that means having at least one parent," she smiled wryly. "One parent who isn't constantly trying to run a company from the helm. I'll miss L-Corp like crazy, but I can still consult and work in the labs, and I'll take it back piece by piece when school picks up for her in a few years, and fully once she goes to college."

Kara nodded, looking thoughtfully at the carpet. "Not to make this journalistic, but as a friend, do you want that publicized or not publicized?"

Lena sighed. "I don't know, but I appreciate the ask. I'd prefer people knew why I was stepping back, but I don't want her anywhere near the tabloids." Kara nodded again. "If you can dance around that line and just say I have personal commitments or something, you're welcome to print whatever you want."

"Don’t worry," Kara said softly, and Lena blinked, an _I trust you_ halfway out of her mouth, but Kara shook her head, a gentle smile on her face. "She's being adopted into a loving home," Kara told her. "Those of us that were turn out just fine, no matter how afraid the parents are."

"You were--?"

Kara's smile reached her eyes in such a genuine way Lena's worries were washed away. "The Danvers took me in when I was twelve. They had no idea what to do with me, but they loved me nonetheless. They're the best family I could have asked for, and not because they always knew what to say--they didn't. Because they kept trying, and they loved me." She dropped her notebook into her purse, and folded Lena abruptly into a hug. "Your kid is going to be just fine with you," Kara promised in her ear, and Lena was suddenly just a little misty-eyed. Kara left with a squeeze to her shoulder and a wink, and Lena sat down heavily in her chair, feeling just a little lighter.

It was two weeks of a nearly non-verbal Tessa, who played quietly nonetheless, and every day there was one more word than there was before, and Lena made sure she was clean and healthy and well-fed and comfortable, and counted it as progress. Still, she couldn’t be more ready to have Tessa socialize with kids her own age. Jack had brought over his small son Max once or twice, and Max had been too loud and happy for Tessa to easily interact with yet. Jack had chuckled and commented their kids were much like their young selves.

And then Lena walked Tessa to school for the first few times and who does she meet on the second day but Kara Danvers.

"No way," Kara said, guiding a little boy over. "This is where you're taking your niece to preschool?"

"Yeah," Lena said, stumbling over herself because Kara looked just as she did, and she was one of the few people Lena was upset she might not see anymore with this new parenthood life. But then. Kara had a _son._ She was probably with someone, if not married. "You take your kid here too?"

"Oh," Kara laughed, swinging the boy's hand. "No, no, JD isn't mine. I'm still single and childless. He's my sister and her wife's. I just take him on Tuesdays and Fridays to help out, you know they both have such big jobs, they're awesome."

"Oh," Lena said, fighting to stay cool as relief crashed over her in a dizzy wave. "That's… really nice of you."

And Kara tilted her head at the lost note in Lena's voice. "You wanna chat after I drop this one off? I don't have to be in for a bit, and now that we don't have a professional relationship… I'd love to be friends, if you want to."

So they sat and they talked, Lena explaining the fucked up secretive circumstances that led her to being Tessa's guardian, the doubts she had and the way she hadn't slept the last two nights, Kara listening calmly through it all and telling her what Alex and Kelly did for the few kid-raising problems that were relatable.

It was… nice.

Lena quickly became a lot more centered. Their relationship both cooled down and got more personal at once, Lena toning down the flirt she had shamelessly employed when Kara was a reporter, but getting to know Kara better than she had.

It had only taken two months on the same preschool run for Kara to ask her out.

Lena kept her gaze forwards, clapping with an “Atta girl!” As Tessa passed (intentionally or not, she’d never know) the ball to JD. JD nearly tripped over it, recovered himself, and dribbled in the vague direction of the goal. “Yes, go JD, go!” She side-eyed the woman next to her. “Not only is this not the place to ask, but I have nothing to offer you,” she reminded her.

“Ms. Luthor,” the woman in the suit insisted, “We need your expertise. No one has a better grasp on the mechanics and can work better under pressure, plus—“

“Plus I made sure all my research was proprietary and would stay that way, yes,” Lena filled in, eyes fixed on the green of the peewee soccer field. Her team, the yellow Bumblebees, saw three people trip in the span of ten seconds, one of them on the soccer shorts they were absolutely swimming in, but all of them got up quickly, like Lena had drilled them on in practice earlier this week. “So you are at a loss, Colonel Haley.” Lena spared her a smirk. “Sorry about that.”

Colonel Haley frowned, but was distracted as Lena’s attention was pulled towards the field once more. “Yes! Yes!” The yellow Bumblebees had scored. Lena jumped into the air, clapping and cheering like a maniac. The Bumblebees all cheered and ran back towards their end of the field, all stopping by to high-five her.

“Why—why are there so many parents here that don’t have a child on the team?” Colonel Haley asked, momentarily thrown at the loud cheer from the small row of benches on the sideline.

Lena glanced at them, mostly younger adults and some teenagers, mostly women, who all quickly looked away as the coach looked at them. She rolled up the sleeves of her casual blazer over her team polo, shrugged as she dusted off her jeans (she knew she looked good in those jeans, but there was no way that was why there were so many extra spectators) (dear reader, I as the omniscient narrator do assure you Lena is indeed the reason so many parents are there). “Big soccer town,” she brushed off the comment.

“It’s peewee soccer,” Colonel Haley pointed out.

Lena didn’t hear, too busy hugging Tessa as she ran by. “Way to go, sweetie! Let’s get another goal, guys!” Lena spared Colonel Haley one last glance. “Listen,” she drawled, and lowered her voice, “If the Bumblebees lose this match—“ (she ignored colonel Haley’s _they don’t keep score at this age_ comment) “—then I’m going to have a dozen crying little children on my hands, and I don’t want that. That means a lot of time spent in ice cream shops and at TayTay concerts.”

“TayTay?”

“Taylor Swift!” Lena hissed, shaking her head in outraged disappointment. “You’ve got to be shitting me. Get it together!”

“So this is an urgent matter,” Colonel Haley guessed, impassive.

“The only thing I love more than saving lives is my daughter,” Lena told her. “So unless you’re here to cheer on the Bumblebees, then I’ll be forced to call the police for harassment on public grounds, and all those overprotective, overzealous soccer fans and parents are going to hear me place that call. So,” she said, drawing closer and allowing a little bit of the menacing sneer she hadn’t gotten to exercise since her boardroom days creep back in to her voice, focusing her gaze solely on Haley for just a moment, “I either want to hear some Bumblebee spirit, or you are going to be in a world of bureaucratic hurt.” She tilted her head to the side. “Got it?”

Haley’s jaw clenched slightly in what Lena chose to assume was fear. “Go Bumblebees,” she said flatly, pumping a perfunctory fist.

Lena smiled coldly. “Good.”

She turned back the game. Because that was far more important.

Lena growled as she stopped at a newsstand on the way to her home. It was a rare evening she'd let Kara talk her into letting Alex and Kelly host a sleepover, and they'd all had dinner together, the four of them and JD and Tessa. JD and Tessa were getting along better and better, more words spoken, and were quickly becoming fast friends. Lena had initially balked at the idea of a boy and a girl having a sleepover--Lillian would never have allowed it, but Kara had frowned incredulously and said _Lena they're three. Alex and Kelly have an extra little kid bed and they'll be right there the whole time. What do you think happens at a sleepover at that age?_

Right. So Lena had let it happen, since Tessa lit up at the idea. Alex had promised a functioning Lego drawbridge and Kelly had promised cupcakes and Lena had wanted to stay herself. But Kara had given her a look that had pulled her away instantly. It wasn't a reprimanding _let her have this_ look like Lena had expected. It was a _come and get me_ look, and Lena was only human (and suddenly reminded she hadn't gotten laid since a few months before Tessa had arrived in her life, and while she wasn't bitter or thirsty or anything of the sort, a woman such as her had needs).

But now they were walking past a newsstand, and Lena's steps stuttered to a stop in the evening, growling as she took in the pictures. Kara stopped as well, their arms entwined, and frowned at her, then made a noise of comprehension as she took in the headlines. There, snuck in as a subheading and complete with picture, read on a garish magazine _Lena Luthor and daughter on the town, Pictures Inside._ Another read _Luthor Women? Lillian is out, Tessa is in! Cutest duo hit the farmer's market, new age of suburbia and quietude for Lena._ A third at least didn't feature Tessa, but had the audacity to read _Revamping Fall Wardrobe? Try Lena Luthor's Latest Looks._

"Those are some pathetic headlines," Kara mumbled, reaching for a magazine. Lena pushed her shoulder against Kara's, and Kara retracted her hand. "Sorry. Just couldn’t believe they'd put that on a front page." Kara's face twisted as she tried to think of something to say. "At least they're not negative?"

"It's easy enough to find us as it is," Lena muttered. "Now people who weren't even thinking about me before know I have her. What the hell am I supposed to do?"

"Recheck your security and give them hell in the morning," Kara said, matter-of-fact. "Up your security if you want and make sure Tessa knows not to talk to strangers."

"I'm gonna put a GPS tracker in her bones," Lena growled, "Teach her self-defense, and _end_ everyone involved in printing this."

"A good plan," Kara agreed, sounding properly intimidated, "but can we leave that 'til morning, maybe?" Lena looked over, and Kara smiled faintly. "I sort of thought you were going to end _me_ tonight, and then I'd end you, and then we'd do it again, and again…"

Lena gripped her arm with renewed purpose, heat bleeding down her spine and reminding her of their original purpose for this walk. "Ending them will go better for me during business hours," she said, nodding. "And I fully intend to end you tonight, you're right." Kara's smile looked half-drunk as she staggered after Lena.

They crashed into Lena's apartment and Lena pushed Kara up against the front door as she locked it. Kara's eyes were half-shut under her glasses and Lena smiled as she kissed her, Kara pushing back eagerly. Lena shucked Kara's coat and then Kara was pulling Lena's off as Lena's fingers fumbled at Kara's belt. Shoes were toed off as they stumbled towards the bedroom, and heat and anticipation were bleeding through Lena like she couldn't ever remember before and _god_ she really liked this woman, like _like like,_ not like _fun for a week_ like. It almost scared her.

And then she nearly tripped and Kara was laughing against her neck as her arms wrapped around Lena's waist to catch her. Kara turned her around on her feet so she was walking forwards, lips pressing oh-so-distractingly to the back of Lena's neck, still smiling, and Lena's thoughts turned from scared to reassured. She was safe with Kara. She knew it instinctively. And then Kara's fingers started feeling their way up towards the top button of her blouse as they stepped forward slowly, rocking from side to side with a laughing, gentle kind of unsteadiness, and as Kara slipped the first button free Lena's heart started thundering in earnest.

They reached the bedroom. Kara's fingers had undone half her blouse by now, and cool air on skin was making her feel more jittery and more alertly alive than she had in so long. Lena turned as they reached the bed, tugging Kara in for another kiss. Kara smiled into her, completely unable to help it, and Lena sat down slowly on the edge of the bed, knees weak. Her fingers were doing the fumbling now as she pulled Kara on top of her by the beltloops, Kara leaning down over her.

"I want to make you forget how to breathe," Kara whispered in her ear. "I want to love every inch of you." She pressed a slow, dragging kiss to Lena's jaw. "Would that be good?"

"Fuck," Lena gasped. "Yes. Yes, but," she seized the front of Kara's shirt. "Only if I get my turn to make you melt once you're done."

And Kara's lips turned into the shape of a smirk. "You can do whatever you want to me," she promised, and Lena lost track of reality for a bit.

The moon was shining through Lena's bedroom window over an hour later, a window Lena was thoroughly glad was closed and soundproofed, lest her neighbors think she was being murdered. Kara lay next to her, the pair of them both panting, and Lena stared up at the ceiling in disbelief. It wasn't like Kara--or her, for that matter--was some unbelievable sex goddess. It was just like, well, they were attentive to one another and cared about making the other feel good and there were feelings. And that had made it all so _unbelievably_ fucking good.

"Holy shit," Lena muttered.

"Holy shit," Kara agreed. Kara turned closer to her, and Lena rolled her head over, grinning. "I'd ask if we can do that again, but I think my body needs a breather."

"We should set an alarm," Lena said, trying not to laugh at the dumbstruck expression on Kara's face. "Get in an early round before I go pick up Tessa."

Kara laughed. "You're such a nerd. _Early round,_ " she teased. "I should start calling you Amy Santiago."

"You're making a Brooklyn Nine Nine joke after we just had sex and it's _not_ the title of your sextape joke?" Lena asked incredulously. "And by the way, you're looking at the former CEO of a tech company," Lena reminded her, smiling. "And are you complaining?"

"My bad. And I most definitely am not complaining."

"Good." Kara grinned at her satisfaction and edged closer, pressing a kiss to Lena's shoulder. Lena's smile slowly faded. "Kara," she said softly, and Kara _mmm_ ed, caught up in her new task. "Kara," she tried again, and Kara lifted her head up to look at her, blonde curls wild. _Sex hair,_ Lena thought, immature but obscenely happy with the thought. "Hey," she said, reaching for Kara's hand to kiss the knuckles. Kara smiled. "I know," she started, and the words seemed to stick in her throat. _Why_ did she have to think of this now? "I know we've got a good thing," she tried.

Kara leaned over abruptly to kiss her soundly. "We do," Kara said softly, propping herself on an elbow. "Why are you thinking so hard right now?"

"I just thought of it," Lena half-confessed.

"We need to talk about it now?" Kara asked, not looking put-out but concerned. Lena nodded. "Okay," Kara said simply.

A rush of warmth went through Lena. "Thanks," she murmured. "I'm just, I'm worried you don't know what you're signing up for." Kara recoiled slightly, an incredulous frown on her face. "Tessa," Lena said quietly, and Kara relaxed. "The security, the publicity, I'll handle it, you don't need to worry about it, you already know about that stuff. But Tessa, she's my daughter now, for real, we're a package deal, and Kara," Lena pressed her free hand over her eyes, squeezing them shut. "She likes you, and if this doesn't work out after we tell her we're together, if she gets used to you, and you have to go, I don't know what I'm supposed to do then, I don't know--"

"Hey, hey," Kara was murmuring. Lena cut herself off. She slowly opened her eyes and removed her hand to see Kara looking at her with the same sincerity Lena had first fallen in love with. "I know all this," Kara said gently. She smiled. "I'm already the third parent for JD, we all know it. I know _exactly_ what being with someone who has a child means. I know I fell in love with one and got two like some kind of extra chicken nugget at McDonald's, and I'm _psyched_ about it, okay? I'm not going anywhere."

A sigh of relief escaped Lena. "Okay," she murmured. "If you're sure."

Kara smiled, and leaned down to kiss her again. "I am. However long you want to wait to tell Tessa about us to be sure and be careful, I understand and I have no complaints. You're in control, and I'm happily here, okay?"

"Okay," Lena sighed, relaxing in full. Kara lowered herself to rest her head in the crook of Lena's neck, and Lena wound her arms around Kara's back, fully content now. A hysterical laugh bubbled up in her chest. "Extra chicken nugget," Lena laughed. "Oh my god, Kara, what am I going to do with you?"

"Hey," Kara started to protest, lifting herself up, but Lena hugged her tighter, keeping her down. "You're my favorite full-sized human," Lena laughed, and Kara relaxed. "For real. We're calling her nugget from now on."

Lena swirled into CatCo in a flurry of style and purpose.

Well, she didn't _look_ like she had purpose. She looked like she was there to pick up her girlfriend for lunch.

"Lena!" Kara said, smiling as she caught sight of her. Then she frowned as Lena kissed her cheek gently, Lena's proximity and the deliberate way she pressed lips to her cheek never failing to make her brain stutter. "Am I late? I thought we were going later."

"We are," Lena said, pulling back and smiling, glancing around. "I'm early. Hey, Cat's here!"

"Uh, yes, she sort of runs the place," Kara said, chuckling. "She's usually here."

"Yes," Lena mused, running her hand down Kara's arm in an absent gesture, squeezing her fingers. "You used to manage her whole schedule, didn't you?"

"I did," Kara said, adjusting her glasses, clearly wondering where this was going.

"How does she respond to walk-ins?"

"Poorly," Kara said flatly, her eyebrows raising a millimeter in question.

"Mm," Lena said noncommittally. "But how hard is it to get on her schedule?"

"When you don't have something legitimate to be doing business with her about? Very."

"Mm," Lena said again, and Kara opened her mouth in question. Lena beat her to it. "Sorry, darling," she murmured, darting forward to kiss the corner of Kara's mouth. "But I'm going to have to use you working here as my access pass today." She squeezed Kara's hand once more and let go abruptly, striding forward with a purpose, leaving Kara scrambling after her, dumbfounded and hissing whispered _don't_ s in a broken record.

"Who are you and why are you in my office," Cat snapped in a dry tone as Lena entered, without looking up. Lena came to a halt in front of her desk with Kara just outside Cat's office, leaned her hands against it, and Cat looked up, her expression turning to one of intrigued surprise. "Well, the ex-CEO of the world's largest tech conglomerate, Lena Luthor." Cat raised an eyebrow at Lena's three-piece navy suit, a stunning piece that Lena wore with casual confidence. "I daresay you've still got your style."

"I could say the same," Lena said, smiling just a little.

"And why are you still in my office on a Wednesday?" Cat asked dryly, setting her pen down and leaning back. "I thought you had a small human in your care these days."

"She has a playdate after school today," Lena explained with a small, cold smile, and leaned forwards. "Tessa's why I'm here," she explained flatly. Cat raised an eyebrow. "I want her out of the tabloids, Cat."

Cat raised a perfectly-manicured eyebrow. "And you think _I_ am the one putting a three-year-old in the tabloids."

"Three and a half," Lena corrected automatically, and Cat rolled her eyes. "I think you are someone with an incredible amount of influence and power in this industry, and even if you can't stop it all with a wave of your magic media wand, you can tell me how to."

Cat sighed, and motioned to one of the chairs across from her desk. "Sit." Lena sat, though she took a moment to do it elegantly. "And Kiera," she called out, "I'm not going to eat her, you can go back to work." Lena turned to glance at Kara's worried look before Kara turned around and went back to her desk. Lena winced. "Using your girlfriend to get in to see me," Cat said appraisingly. "I'm impressed."

"I did not mean to exploit my personal connections," Lena sighed. "I just saw Tessa in another tabloid on my way up to meet her and I snapped. You so happened to be here. What can I say?" she leaned back, gesturing. "The stars aligned."

Cat graced her with the smallest of impressed smiles. "Still. Enjoy getting out of the doghouse with this one."

Lena bit her lip. "Tessa's more important than anything to me. I'll do anything to protect her. That's something Kara understands."

Cat eyed her for a long moment, then nodded. "Okay. First of all, I can publish a scathing editorial and call up a few people who know how to put heat on the worst offenders. That should take care of most if not all of it. You're right, children shouldn't be stalked, not even by those who are only holding cameras. Secondly, if that doesn't work," Cat pulled a post-it towards her, scribbled a name and number on it, and peeled it off to hand to Lena. "Call Lucy Lane. She can litigate your way into any lawsuit and win it for you. She charges a lot, but I assume that's not an issue."

Lena examined the number. "You'd be correct," she said, smiling. Cat nodded. "Thank you," Lena added sincerely.

"Yes, well, what can I say," Cat sighed, looking as though the burden of society was on her shoulders and she didn’t particularly mind, "I am quite wonderful."

Lena laughed, standing. "Well, if there's anything I can do for you in return, don't hesitate to reach out."

Cat smiled calculatingly, chewing on the tip of her glasses. "I quite imagine I'll have something soon."

Lena was waiting for Kara in the lobby. She shot her a text saying as much, and Kara had responded with a simple _okay._

"I'm sorry," was the first thing out of Lena's mouth. "I saw Tessa in another tabloid on the way up and I saw red, then I saw Cat and I saw a solution and I just used you and went for it." Lena twisted her fingers together nervously, then pulled herself upright. "I understand if you don't want to see me anymore or right now, but I will always put Tessa first, over anything, and that includes my relationship with you, as much as I love being with you, I had to protect her, and--oh."

Kara was hugging her. Tightly, in the middle of the bottom floor of the CatCo lobby, for everyone to see. "It's okay," Kara said calmly. "I wasn't pleased at first, mostly because I was worried she was going to eat you alive, but I get it. Tessa comes first. You were protecting your family. You don't have to apologize for anything."

Lena's entire body shook in her grasp, once, twice, then Lena nodded against her shoulder. "Okay," Lena murmured.

"Okay," Kara said, pulling back to loop an arm around Lena's shoulders and guide them towards the exit. "Then let's go to lunch, fierce mama." She tugged Lena tighter against her side. "Besides," she murmured in her ear. "I'm sure you can think of _some_ delightful way to make it up to me."

They skipped lunch to spend the precious alone time locked in Lena's apartment.

(Kara was late back to work with hastily redone hair and a growling stomach and a smile the size of Texas that Cat Grant eyed suspiciously before laughing abruptly at, but Kara couldn’t care less. And Lena was perfectly on time to pick up Tessa.)

Lena sighed at yet _another_ letter from the PTA finding its way home in Tessa's backpack.

"Sweetie, isn't the same one you brought home yesterday?"

Tessa shrugged, hopping to get the orange juice on the middle shelf of the fridge, two little hands necessary to hold it. "Ms. Hoang said we had to take it home."

"Apparently," Lena muttered, scanning the document. She could swear she got more PTA notices than she did emails as a CEO at this point. " _Another_ bake sale? Aren't people sick of cookies?"

"Cookies are good," Tessa pointed out, and Lena grinned at her.

"Yes they are," she agreed. "You need help pouring that juice?" Tessa considered, then nodded. "Okay," Lena said, pulling the container out of her little hands. "Get yourself a cup and I'll pour some." Her phone dinged with a text from Kara. _Still on for dinner tonight?_ Lena smiled as she typed in a reply. _Only if I haven't assassinated the PTA president by then._

Tessa took great delight in welcoming Kara into the apartment that night for dinner (Lena had been working on her manners and was pleased to see it paying off), and Kara was absolutely charmed. "Why thank you," Kara told her, latching the door behind her as Tessa missed shutting it all the way.

"Thanks Tess. You can keep watching TV if you want." Tessa skipped back to the couch, completely absorbed in Handy Manny.

Kara approached the kitchen counter where Lena was working, one eyebrow raised appreciatively. "Using your kid to charm your dates, Luthor? That's crafty." Lena snorted with laughter, and Kara grinned, dropping her purse on a chair and wrapping her arms around Lena's waist from behind. "I like it."

Lena let the knife drop, leaning back into Kara's solid frame, Kara's coat chilly but a welcome presence anyways. "Crafty enough to shoot the PTA president and get away with it?"

Kara's arms tightened around her waist and she pressed a kiss behind Lena's ear. "I saw we were feeling a little latent rage this afternoon. What'd the Banshee do now?"

"I coach a soccer team and consult for my company," Lena sighed. "I don't have _time_ for the fifth bake sale of the month. And that's not counting my main job, as you know, a _parent._ We're not robots. And," Lena said, getting worked up now, lurching out of Kara's arms and spinning around to face her, "She does it all with this slutty little superiority, like, you _know_ she's sleeping with two other men than her husband right now, god, I hate straight people."

"They suck," Kara agreed, watching her.

"But whatever if she's a total whore! No shame! Open marriages can be cool if you're into that! What's bothering me is how she's like, murdering the environment as she takes out her misery on the PTA! We don't need the money! I've checked the budgets! What we _should_ be doing is easing up on the parent events and actually _listening_ to the teachers, they know what they're doing and what'd be good for the kids every once in a while." Lena paused, tilting her head. "Right?"

Kara slowly reached forwards and grabbed one of the carrots Lena was slicing, nodding as she ate it. "You ever thought about running for PTA president?"

Lena laughed. "Yeah, right." She turned back around to pick up the knife again, and Kara rounded the counter island, sitting down opposite Lena, glancing at Tessa to make sure she was still occupied.

"I'm serious, Lena. You know exactly what we need. You know, it might be a little more time at first, during the running and getting things off the ground--or closer to the ground, whatever--but then you could ease back on the events and stuff and end up doing less work than you are now. It'd be great. Everyone would win. Except, you know Siobhan," she said, pointing with another carrot thoughtfully, "Which is just another win for the rest of us."

"You're serious?" Lena asked faintly. "I just stepped down from being CEO of the largest tech conglomerate in the world, and you want me… to run for the PTA president of Tessa's preschool."

Kara merely looked at her, and raised an eyebrow slightly. "Yeah. I do."

Lena's mouth opened slightly, watching her girlfriend, but Kara was perfectly serious. "Kara, half the parents still hate me."

"No, Siobhan and Leslie and Mercy do. That's three. Maybe Beth, too, but she's there like one day every other week. Everyone else would like, die for you. Mostly because you stick up for them and have good ideas and make their lives generally easier by forcing Siobhan and company to back off, but," Kara shrugged unrepentantly, "Also because you're hot."

Lena's mouth dropped open. "You did not just say that."

Kara grinned mischievously. "I really did. And here I have you _all_ to myself. That makes _me_ the hated parent, and I'm not even a parent, which makes everyone doubly hate me."

Lena's stomach flipped in a few circles at her words. "You do have me all to yourself," she agreed. "But you're still wrong."

"Fine," Kara said, straightening. "I'll ask other people who they'd want to be PTA president. Then you can decide for yourself if you want to run. Besides," she said, reaching forward to snatch another handful of carrots, and Lena stilled her knife to not chop off Kara's fingers with a roll of her eyes, "You were completely right all those times you said how ridiculous it was that a preschool had a PTA _this_ involved. You could even disband the PTA if you found the evidence to show we don't need one."

"She's right, love," Jack informed her Friday morning. Lena rolled her eyes. "Sorry," Jack said, taking a sip of her coffee the way Kara always did, the pair of them sitting on her bench. "But I am _not_ doing another PTA bake sale. It's not happening. I don't care if Siobhan comes after me. The only reason I go to those damn meetings is to see Winn anyway."

Lena snatched her coffee back. "Your crush on Mr. Schott is really getting out of control. And stop drinking my coffee, that's what Kara does and people are going to start thinking I'm dating both of you."

Jack made a face, then laughed. "Before you were dating Kara, I'd say tough luck. But you have a good point, and I don't want to spread rumors when Winn _just_ started laughing a little more loudly at my jokes." He pulled a thoughtful face. "You think if Max got in trouble I'd have to go in for a parent-teacher conference?"

"Do not condition your child to misbehave so _you_ can get attention," Lena said sternly. "That will only backfire in every other classroom from here on out."

"Fair," Jack muttered dejectedly, then he sighed and stood. "Listen love, keep brainstorming on how to get me closer to Mr. Schott, and I'll be the secretary to your president. Hang on," he said delightedly, grinning at Lena. " _That_ would get me closer to him, wouldn't it!"

"Or you could just go _talk to him,_ " Lena pointed out, but Jack made a _shut up_ gesture like that was a stupid idea. Lena had to admit it was pretty stupid. No one talked to their crushes like a normal person around here.

"Oh yeah, I've got it now," Jack said, grinning like a maniac. "You're going to be president, I'll be secretary, and then I'll get time with him. Duh. This is going to be awesome."

"Have you not thought about your own tech conglomerate responsibilities?" Lena asked dryly.

"Please, I gave up the CEOship before you did. I gave _you_ the idea. And since you're managing so well, then I know that having a relationship is a fine idea. Okay," Jack clapped his hands together. "This was an excellent chat, love, I have to go do a quick consulting thingy this morning, remember that Beth's picking up Max so you won't see my charming face--" Lena made a face at the mention of Jack's nasty ex-wife (that marriage lasted less than a year but Jack insisted that because it gave him Max, who he had full custody of besides the occasional allowed picking up from school, it wasn't a waste of time.), "And by the way, my Green Dragons are going to crush your Yellow Bumblebees on Saturday, so prepare yourself."

"Nerd," Lena called after him, and he laughed as he jogged out to his (non-Porsche) minivan.

"Who you calling nerd?"

Lena rolled her head around to smile lazily at Kara. "You, obviously, Santiago."

"Hey," Kara said, giggling just a little, trying to hold a finger up sternly. "I am the Peralta in this relationship." She sat down next to Lena, stretching her arm over the back of the bench and leaning ever so slightly into Lena's side. "So, I don't know if people know we're dating or not, but I waved to Tessa as I was walking out from dropping JD off and she got really excited to see me."

"She smiled like she normally does when she sees you?"

"Yeah," Kara said, a little pride in her voice, and Lena smiled at the image. "I made the shh gesture you know, because Ms. Hoang was talking, but like, you know she doesn't get excited for most people, so I think it'd be pretty obvious."

"Outed by the three-year-old," Lena muttered, but couldn’t suppress a grin. She turned to Kara, who was already watching her. "You know I don't want to keep us a secret, right? You know I’m okay if the whole world knows?"

Pink dusted Kara's cheeks alongside her freckles. "Yeah?" she asked, a small smile growing bigger on her face.

Lena leaned closer, pulled Kara towards her with a finger under her chin. "Yeah," she promised, and kissed her. Just once, short and chaste. They were in front of a preschool, after all. But Kara's breathless smile told her it was all that was needed.

Franklin and his daughter passing by gave them a subtly elated thumbs up.

**Author's Note:**

> should be a second chapter. no idea when it'll be up but I've got a vague outline.


End file.
